Among the patients oncological centers, every twelfth woman and sixth man have pancreatic cancer, the symptoms of which are not specific. The tumor is found( starts to bother) too late to be effectively treated. The asymptomatic course of the disease is very dangerous with consequences, mortality at resection is 30%, the number of patients increases annually. The proximity of many organs contributes to their simultaneous defeat.
Pancreatic cancer: symptoms of
Doctors can detect metastases by accident( which often happens) during surgery on another organ, although the patient did not have any complaints. When a pancreatic tumor develops, the symptoms are primary and secondary. The few listen to the primary, because the population of the country does not undergo a regular examination. The main uncomfortable sensations inherent in the disease look like this:
- jaundice - the duct is squeezed, moving bile, why it fills the tissues, imparting a characteristic color to the eye proteins and skin integuments( mechanical type of the disease, manifested after changes in the body)
- loss of appetite - too general symptom, which is not given due attention to
- weight loss - similar to the previous one, patients do not pay attention to
- pain - both in the back and in the epigastric department of
. If pancreatic cancer beginsin the body for a long time, the symptoms of the disease are gradually exacerbated, they force to take measures. Exact diagnostic methods exist, therefore, you should consult a doctor at the slightest signs characteristic of the disease. Blurriness of contours at ultrasound examination will allow to cure a disease in time without surgery.
The first symptoms of pancreatic cancer
Blockage or breakage of the duct lead to irreversible changes( it takes the form of a flying bush).The tumor is localized in one of the four parts of the organ, therefore, the pancreatic head cancer symptoms differ somewhat from the body, neck and tail. A total lesion is considered to be several damaged departments. Statistics show that out of a hundred people have a total defeat of 5%, a tail of 7%, a body of 14%, all other cases fall on the head. The first stage is characterized by a tumor that has not germinated from the body. Before the appearance of ERCPC, CT, ultrasound, the only way to determine the disease was X-rays. The first signs of pancreatic cancer( the first stage):
- pain - weak, dull, prolonged( swelling of the head), left sternum and waist( tail and body)
- pruritus - appears before yellowing of the skin and eye proteins, due to deposits of crystals emerging frombile
Secondary signs of pancreatic cancer
Recognize the patient how pancreatic cancer manifests itself in a month and a little later on the emerging signs:
- diabetes - a secretion disorder, hypoglycemia syndrome, intrasecretory insufficiency
- stool - diarrhea gives way to constipation, fatty stool increases, sharp odor
- Curvoesier syndrome - swelling in the area of duodenal
- achiolia - feces discoloration
- hepatic colic
To find out how the disease manifests, you can have a gastroenterologist, a nutritionist, a doctor in charge. The stage of the process affects the pain sensation, the phenomenon of weight reduction is always present. Metastases in the liver, duodenum, sprouting into lymph nodes and vessels lead to inoperability of the disease. Analyzes on the appointment of a doctor and diagnosis on special equipment will not bring the disease to this state.
Early signs and signs of pancreatic cancer
Oncological pancreatic damage in most cases begins gradually and does not have a bright and characteristic symptomatology. Depending on the localization of the process, early symptoms of pancreatic cancer may have different characteristics:
- suddenly developed diabetes - can signal the damage to the tail;
- jaundice sclera, mucous membranes, and in the future and skin, more often develops with damage to the head;
- pain giving in the back is more typical when the tumor is located in the body of the organ.
Common early signs of pancreatic cancer, which should be a cause for concern and referral to a specialist, are a persistent decline in appetite, a transformation in taste, an inexplicable weight loss. In a certain part of the patients, dull pains in the epigastrium are recorded, amplifying at night.
In case of early treatment, the doctor can detect symptoms of the disease in time such as an enlarged gallbladder, which happens at the pressure of the tumor process on the bile duct. A scrotal examination shows a change in the structure and color of the stool, as well as the presence of particles of undigested food in it. Also, patients may have a darkening of the urine.
Ultrasound signs of pancreatic cancer
Ultrasound diagnosis is the first stage of an instrumental examination in case of suspected oncology. The informative value of the method in pancreatic lesions is rather high, but not exhaustive - in some cases its sensitivity does not exceed 40%.
The limited effectiveness of the technique is due to the insufficient resolution of modern equipment, which often does not allow us to clearly distinguish small tumors from local inflammatory processes, to comprehend the damage to adjacent organs and the extent of metastasis.
And yet, ultrasound is widely used at the initial stage as an accessible and less invasive method that allows to identify the following ultrasound signs of pancreatic cancer:
- enlargement of the size of the whole organ or its separate parts;
- lowering the level of tissue echogenicity;
- tuberosity of borders in the field of oncological process;
- detection of tumor-like nodular structures;
- dilated bed of the main pancreatic duct.
In addition, the dimensions of the liver and spleen, the state of the bile canals and duodenum, the enlargement of the adjacent lymph nodes, the presence of fluid in the abdominal cavity and duodenostasis, as well as the state of the splenic and portal veins are carefully studied.
Symptoms of swelling of the head, tail of the pancreas
Primary localization of the oncologic focus often has a great influence on the subsequent course of the disease, the overall clinical picture and complaints of the patient. So the symptoms of the head tumor, the tail of the pancreas can vary significantly.
Cancer of the gland's head is the most frequent and leaks heavier. This is due to the anatomical location of this part of the organ closely adjacent to large vessels, ducts, duodenum. Tumor process leads to their squeezing, which is indicated by the corresponding clinical symptoms of the disease. One of the characteristic features of this localization is the development of mechanical jaundice, in the absence of other complaints.
Cancer of the tail of the pancreas can for a long time not reveal itself, or it can be expressed as suddenly developed diabetes. This is due to the fact that this zone is responsible for the production of insulin. Of the other symptoms of cancer, patients may experience aching epigastric and lower back pain, anemia, weight loss and appetite, nausea and loose stools.
For definitive diagnosis, patients undergo MRI and blood tests for specific oncomarkers. Treatment of symptoms of pancreatic oncology is surgical intervention, which, due to the peculiarities of the location of the organ, is associated with great difficulties and risks.